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Now that 2017 has begun, it’s time to embark on those New Year’s resolutions to eat nutritious food, and turn last year’s flab into abs (or just a flatter tummy, if we want to be realistic). Which means bidding farewell to artery-cloggingfried chicken and salted egg yolk everything, embracing a clean diet filled with fruits and vegetables, and finally signing up for that exercise regime we’ve been procrastinating on.

But for meat-lovers who usually ignore the salad bar at buffets, and can’t go a day without their protein fix, the mere thought of subsisting on greens may sound quite unappealing. Miserable, even. Our solution? To have a #cheatday every once in a while, when you get to devour something that isn’t exactly healthy, but so delicious it’s worth every cholesterol-packed bite. We recommend a succulent, well-marbled steak, preferably seared to perfection with a slightly charred crust and a gorgeously pink interior. Pair this with wines, spirits or cocktails, and you’re good to go.

For those days when you want to treat yourself, we’ve compiled a list of steak and drink pairings from some of Singapore’s finest steakhouses and restaurants.

Bistecca Tuscan Steakhouse

Bring your friends and dig into this decadent wagyu steak.

The dish: Fiorentina Wagyu MBS 6+. This massive 1.1kg T-bone steak is ideal for sharing between two or three diners. It is cooked on a high temperature wood-fired grill and finished with extra-virgin olive oil and salt.

Bistecca Tuscan Steakhouse’s Beast of Burden cocktail.

Pair it with: Beast of Burden cocktail, which comprises Laphroaig 10 year old single malt whisky, Campari and Pedro Ximenes sherry. “This cocktail has a strong note of smokiness, which helps to match the unique taste of the charcoal meat,” says Rico Deang, Bar Manager and Group Mixologist for Red Door Group, which operates Bistecca Tuscan Steakhouse.

The dish: Full Blood Wagyu Grain Fed, Blackmore MS 9+. This 200g skirt steak from Alexandra, Victoria, is a signature offering at SKIRT, and is prepared over a parrilla grill equipped with mesquite wood.

Pair it with: San Jose Del Rio Minas mezcal by Del Maguey, served neat at room temperature, with plain water on the side. This spirit is created in the Northern Mixteca Alta region of Oaxaca, Mexico, and is infused with a nose of papaya and peaches, which gives way to floral hints and notes of pepper and eucalyptus. “This mezcal is the real deal and made the ancient way: Cut by hand, baked in an earth oven, and stone milled. It is all about smoke,” says Martin Magdeburg, Director of Beverage and Food at W Singapore.

The dish: Westholme wagyu steak. The well-marbled meat is obtained from grain-fed Westholme cattle, which graze on Mitchell grass in Australia. It is cooked over an applewood-fired grill and is available as an entrée at One-Ninety Restaurant’s semi-buffet.

The dish: Australian Black Onyx Tenderloin 150g. Grilled over charcoal in a Pira oven, this 450-day grain-fed wagyu steak is tender and succulent with smoky flavours. Savour it with the restaurant’s bordelaise and bone marrow sauces.

Pair it with: Radford Dale Syrah 2014 from Stellenbosch, South Africa. “The tight but beautiful tannins of the [wine] are softened by the protein of the red meat and its fleshiness. The subtle toasty aroma of the wine — which is aged in barrels — will also mirror the grilled taste of the meat,” says Raffles Singapore’s Wine Director Stéphanie Rigourd. “If you crack some pepper on the meat, it will enhance the spicy and peppery aromas of this syrah. It’s a marriage of texture and aromas.”

The dish: Ojo de Bife, a 400g rib-eye grass-fed steak imported from Argentina. It is seared on a custom-made wooden charcoal grill for a slightly charred, smoky-tasting exterior.

Mi Terruno Mayacaba Malbec from Mendoza, Argentina.

Pair it with: Mi Terruno Mayacaba Malbec from Mendoza, Argentina. “The wine has full-bodied, round tannings that complement the fattiness of the rib-eye. It also has a hint of new wood flavour and blackberries, which blends well with the meat,” says Fabrice Mergalet, Head Chef of boCHINche.